Interesting post and timely. Several years back I found out I carry one of the genes for this and at that time my iron level was not high enough for me to need to draw blood but I was told to monitor it. I've been largely following the blood type diet and my iron has dropped also. I kept wondering why as I was told it would go higher after menopause which I have since gone through but the reverse has happened. So perhaps it is the Blood type diet.

About 6 months ago I found out I carry one of the genes. What is your ferritin level?I was told not to get concerned unless mine gets over 1000.What do you mark when you do your Swami?Thanks for the information.Maryann

“A New Perspective on Iron DeficiencyPresentation Given by Roberta Crawford in June 2001 at NIH Workshop in Bethesda, MDA prevailing myth says that iron deficiency is the world’s greatest nutritional problem.Let’s define anemia: a deficiency of red cells or hemoglobin, or red cells that die too young or are discolored or possess an abnormal shape, or red cells that lack adequate iron.Now defining iron deficiency—so-called “normal” iron levels vary from lab to lab. Most “normal” levels are set too high. Saturation: 12 to 40-45% is reasonable at the present time. Ferritin: 5 to probably 50. As our years of study have shown, we have had to lower these levels several times to be safe.Think about it. If “normal” levels are set artificially high, and your levels fall below that “normal,” you are “iron deficient.”So how much iron does the human body really need? Iron is not excreted. The iron you absorb stays and accumulates in storage except that you can lose one milligram a day through hair, finger nails, skin cells and other detritus. That is the amount needed every day to replace the loss. One milligram. (Women in reproductive years, one and a half milligram). The RDAs orRDIs recommended by the Food and Nutrition Board is out of date and incorrect. The other way to lose iron, of course, is by blood loss.The normal levels of iron need to be lowered.Hemoglobin is not iron! Unfortunately physicians prescribe iron to anemic people who test with low hemoglobin. Yes, the patients are anemic, but the iron is collecting in storage instead of going into hemoglobin. These people are iron-loaded. They need iron removed despite the anemia. The anemia should be treated with B vitamins, especially B12, B6 and folic acid. Many patients with anemia are dying of iron overload, and some are hastened to their death by their physicians who give iron. Blood banks seem to believe that hemoglobin and iron are the same. They have prepared lists of high iron foods to give out to donors with low hemoglobin. They invariably tell these people: “Your iron is low.” Dangerous misinformation.Physicians like to diagnose or rule out a disease called hemochromatosis. That causes confusion and many problems. There is no consensus. Doctors hesitate to treat without a diagnosis. Too bad that word was ever invented. Each patient is different with different symptoms and different iron levels.First: treatment does no harm whether there is excess iron or not. A cutoff is set on hematocrit to prevent severe anemia, and when the patient tests under that cutoff, blood is not taken that day. Giving blood is beneficial.Second: even a small amount of excess iron can damage heart and brain and other storage sites in the body and lead to heart attack or stroke. It is foolish to wait until iron levels confirm “hemochromatosis.”There is exaggerated concern when hemoglobin falls temporarily, following surgery, for example. Blood transfusions are over-used. A study shows that surgery patients who do not receive transfusions survive better than those who do. [NEJM Feb 1999 340:409-17]Before taking iron you must test saturation and ferritin. (Ferritin indicates storage iron, which is not essential to maintain life). If both saturation and ferritin are extremely low, you must discover why. Low iron is a signal that iron is being used by cancer cells or is feeding bacteria, or usually it means there is chronic daily blood loss. The bleeding could be from an ulcer or tumor, etc. The source must be found.Iron is in just about everything. If you are not absorbing the one daily milligram, you are truly on a starvation diet, and low iron is the least of your worries

People with Hemochromatosis are not allowed to give blood in Massachusetts I guess there are laws on the books that make hospital liable for giving tainted blood?

Hi there.. there is nothing wrong with high iron blood. IT IS NOT tainted. Many states are very happy to have people with Hemochromatosis come in and give blood because they NEED high iron blood. So I don't know what's wrong with MASS!

People with Hemochromatosis NEED a place to give blood especially if they do not have insurance and struggle with finances. I recently had been living in TENN - near Nashville and the blood centers there do not have what they call a 'Special Collections' department so I had to go to a doctor who charged me for every visit to the tune of $700 for three visits. I was outraged and could not afford it or his cocky attitude. Now that I'm in Missouri there is a Special Donations dept here and I can go in and give my blood for free. Thank the Good Lord!!!

I am type O and my Hemochromatosis was discovered 15 years ago after months and months of testing to find out why I was so fatigued and hurting all over. Finally someone got it right and sent me right away to start my blood draws.

I thrive on Meat being an O and do not plan to give it up. The maintenance draws have been approximately every 4-6 months for me but now that I'm headed toward the life change and not having my monthly cycles... I expect it to go up. I take non-iron vitamins and supps. One thing that increases Iron absorbtion is Vit C. So I try not to take this or eat anything high in Vit C during my beef meals.

I know when I get high in iron because my mid back starts to hurt along with other joint areas in my body. It can be a very dangerous disease and people have been mis-diagnoised for years and then died from it accumulating in the liver area.

Hi Maryann,nLast year my ferritin was 100, the Doctor (who specialises in hemochromatosis said it was fine) I travel back and forth to UK a lot with my family there and they won't take the blood in the US because of past concerns on mad cow disease. Ironic as I'm not a beef eater So if mine ever gets to high I would need to ask for blood to be draw and thrown away. Lin